Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Regenerable Biocidal Surfaces Enabled by Self-Assembled Block Copolymer Polyelectrolytes.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2026
Same author

Degradable Cationic Polyesters with Tunable Anion-Induced Upper Critical Solution Temperature Coacervation.

Biomacromolecules·2026
Same author

Glass transition and subphase anchoring govern the emergence of viscoelasticity in polymer interfaces.

Soft matter·2026
Same author

Nonlinear shear rheology of unentangled polymer melts.

Macromolecules·2026
Same author

Controlling the Bioprinting Efficiency of Alginate-Gelatin by Varying Hydroxyapatite Concentrations to Fabricate Bioinks for Bone Tissue Engineering.

Polymers·2026
Same author

Undershoot Recovery in Polystyrene Melts: Effects of Annealing on Repeated Shear Startup.

The journal of physical chemistry. B·2025

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Sep 16, 2025

Fabricating Degradable Thermoresponsive Hydrogels on Multiple Length Scales via Reactive Extrusion, Microfluidics, Self-assembly, and Electrospinning
12:07

Fabricating Degradable Thermoresponsive Hydrogels on Multiple Length Scales via Reactive Extrusion, Microfluidics, Self-assembly, and Electrospinning

Published on: April 16, 2018

13.6K

On-Demand Photodegradable and Thermo-Reversible, Soft, Transparent Dithioacetal Hydrogels.

Maria Psarrou1,2, Ioanna Chatzaki1, Antonis Mavromanolakis2

  • 1Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Crete, Heraklion, Crete, 700 13, Greece.

Angewandte Chemie (International Ed. in English)
|July 11, 2025
PubMed
Summary

Chemically cross-linked polymers can now be degraded by light and reformed with heat. This breakthrough enables the development of advanced, stimuli-responsive multifunctional materials.

Keywords:
Photodegradable hydrogelsRecyclable networksStimuli‐reversible networks

More Related Videos

Synthesis of Hydrogels with Antifouling Properties As Membranes for Water Purification
07:32

Synthesis of Hydrogels with Antifouling Properties As Membranes for Water Purification

Published on: April 7, 2017

9.5K
Synthesis of PolyN-isopropylacrylamide Janus Microhydrogels for Anisotropic Thermo-responsiveness and Organophilic/Hydrophilic Loading Capability
09:09

Synthesis of PolyN-isopropylacrylamide Janus Microhydrogels for Anisotropic Thermo-responsiveness and Organophilic/Hydrophilic Loading Capability

Published on: February 27, 2016

10.1K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Sep 16, 2025

Fabricating Degradable Thermoresponsive Hydrogels on Multiple Length Scales via Reactive Extrusion, Microfluidics, Self-assembly, and Electrospinning
12:07

Fabricating Degradable Thermoresponsive Hydrogels on Multiple Length Scales via Reactive Extrusion, Microfluidics, Self-assembly, and Electrospinning

Published on: April 16, 2018

13.6K
Synthesis of Hydrogels with Antifouling Properties As Membranes for Water Purification
07:32

Synthesis of Hydrogels with Antifouling Properties As Membranes for Water Purification

Published on: April 7, 2017

9.5K
Synthesis of PolyN-isopropylacrylamide Janus Microhydrogels for Anisotropic Thermo-responsiveness and Organophilic/Hydrophilic Loading Capability
09:09

Synthesis of PolyN-isopropylacrylamide Janus Microhydrogels for Anisotropic Thermo-responsiveness and Organophilic/Hydrophilic Loading Capability

Published on: February 27, 2016

10.1K

Area of Science:

  • Polymer Chemistry
  • Materials Science
  • Biomaterials

Background:

  • Stimuli-responsive polymers are crucial for advanced materials.
  • Developing polymers with tunable properties on demand is a key challenge.
  • Existing materials often lack precise control over degradation and reformation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To synthesize photodegradable and thermo-reversible hydrogels.
  • To establish a facile chemical platform for creating these advanced polymer networks.
  • To investigate the material properties and degradation mechanisms.

Main Methods:

  • Synthesis of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based hydrogels using dithioacetal cross-links.
  • Acid-catalyzed step-growth polymerization of PEG-thiol macromer and aromatic dialdehyde.
  • Characterization using dynamic shear rheology and 1H NMR spectroscopy.
  • Investigation of photodegradation under UV irradiation and thermo-reversible reformation.

Main Results:

  • Successful synthesis of photodegradable and thermo-reversible hydrogels.
  • Dithioacetal cross-links enable light-induced degradation.
  • Photodegradation products facilitate thermo-reversible gel reformation.
  • Rheological studies confirmed material properties and stimuli-responsiveness.

Conclusions:

  • A novel chemical platform for stimuli-responsive hydrogels has been developed.
  • The synthesized hydrogels exhibit controlled photodegradation and thermo-reversibility.
  • This work opens avenues for designing advanced multifunctional materials with on-demand property modulation.